When a house, lot or apartment is registered in a child’s name, the parents cannot simply sign a sale or a mortgage. Guatemalan law requires prior authorization through a voluntary jurisdiction proceeding (diligencias voluntarias). The proceeding can go before a notary or a judge, and the Procuraduría General de la Nación (PGN) must be heard. This page sets out the rule, both routes, the documents the PGN’s checklist asks for, and the figures the official sources leave out.
Quick summary
| Item | What the sources say |
|---|---|
| Who must authorize | A competent judge (Código Civil, Art. 264), or a notary if all interested parties agree (Decreto 54-77, Arts. 1 and 11) |
| Grounds required | Absolute necessity and evident benefit to the child (Art. 264) |
| Hearing and opinion | Mandatory hearing, answered within three days, before any resolution, on pain of nullity (Decreto 54-77, Art. 4); the PGN answers it and issues a legal opinion (PGN guidelines, March 2025) |
| Minimum price | Not lower than the appraised value (PGN checklist) |
| Fees | None published; notarial stamps required in the notarial route, amount not stated |
| Total time | Not published |
| Online filing | None identified |
The legal rule
Article 264 of the Código Civil (Decreto-Ley 106) says parents “no pueden enajenar ni gravar los bienes de los hijos” (cannot dispose of or encumber the children’s property), and cannot take on obligations in the children’s name beyond ordinary administration. The only exception is worded this way: “sino por causa de absoluta necesidad y evidente utilidad y previa la autorización del juez competente e intervención del Ministerio Público”. In plain terms: there must be absolute necessity and evident benefit, a competent judge must authorize it in advance, and the Ministerio Público must take part. See the note at the end on how that term relates to the PGN.
Decreto 54-77 opened a second route. Its Article 11 says “La solicitud para disponer o gravar bienes de menores, incapaces o ausentes, podrá presentarse y tramitarse ante notario”, provided the applicant complies with Articles 420 and 421 of the Código Procesal Civil y Mercantil.
Notary or court: which route applies
- Notarial route. Available only if everyone involved agrees. Decreto 54-77, Art. 1 says “se requiere el consentimiento unánime de todos los interesados”. If any party objects at any stage, “el notario se abstendrá de seguir conociendo y remitirá lo actuado al tribunal correspondiente” (the notary stops and sends the file to the court).
- Court route. This is the route Article 264 names, and the destination if a party objects (Art. 1) or the opinion given at the hearing is adverse (Art. 4).
Step by step (notarial route)
- Request. The proceedings start with an initial written application (escrito inicial) or a notarial request record (acta notarial de requerimiento). The PGN checklist says the filer must prove the capacity in which they act, and that this document must “manifestar en forma clara y precisa la utilidad y necesidad de disponer o gravar los bienes del incapaz o ausente”. In other words, it must state clearly why the sale or encumbrance is useful and necessary.
- First resolution. The notary issues a first resolution opening the proceedings and notifies it. In an extrajudicial (notarial) proceeding, the PGN checklist says this resolution is where notarial stamps go: “a la cual se deberá adherir los timbres notariales, en caso el trámite sea extrajudicial”. No stamp amount is given.
- Hearing and notices. Under Decreto 54-77, Art. 12, the notary acts “con audiencia al Ministerio Público y notificación al protutor no representante del menor, en su caso”, then gathers the proposed evidence and may order any further steps on its own initiative.
- Valuation. If a valuation is needed, Art. 12 says it must be done by a “valuador autorizado de conformidad con la ley” (a valuer authorized by law).
- Hearing answered and legal opinion. Decreto 54-77, Art. 4 makes the hearing mandatory where the law provides for it: “el que deberá evacuarla en el término de tres días”, before any resolution, “bajo pena de nulidad de lo actuado” (otherwise the proceedings are null). In the PGN’s checklist this step appears as the resolution granting a hearing to the Procuraduría General de la Nación, and the PGN’s guidelines say the file is presented to the PGN so that it can “evacue audiencia y emita opinión jurídica” (respond to the hearing and issue a legal opinion).
- Resolution. Once the evidence is in, Art. 13 says “el notario dictará resolución bajo su más estricta responsabilidad”, and the resolution must meet the requirements of Art. 423 of the procedure code. After issuing the order, the notary forwards the file for the purposes of that same Art. 423.
- Sale or mortgage deed. The deed comes only after the authorization, since Article 264 requires that authorization in advance.
What the authorization must contain
Article 423 of the Código Procesal Civil y Mercantil lists what the order contains, after the evidence is gathered and the Ministerio Público is heard. Only items 1 to 3 were retrieved:
- Whether any objections raised are well founded: “Si son o no fundadas las oposiciones que se hubieren planteado”.
- “La declaratoria de utilidad y necesidad, en su caso” (the declaration of benefit and necessity, where applicable).
- “La autorización para proceder a la venta o gravamen de los bienes fijando las bases de la operación”. This authorizes the sale or encumbrance and sets the terms of the deal.
Documents on the PGN checklist
The PGN’s guidelines for voluntary jurisdiction matters (dated March 2025, printed pp. 19 to 21) list the following for disposing of property of incapacitated or absent persons. The same guidelines say all proceedings involving children go to the PGN for its hearing and legal opinion.
| Document | Note |
|---|---|
| Initial written application or notarial request record, with attachments | Must prove the capacity in which the applicant acts |
| First resolution admitting the proceedings, and its notification | Notarial stamps attached if extrajudicial |
| Birth certificate issued by RENAP | Of the person whose property it is |
| Certificate from the Registro General de la Propiedad and/or Segundo Registro | Where applicable |
| Inventory and appraisal of the property | Sale price cannot be below the appraisal |
| Documentary proof of benefit and necessity | Utility and necessity must be documented, not just stated |
| Resolution granting a hearing to the PGN | |
| Socioeconomic report by the Organismo Judicial’s social worker | |
| Contract terms (bases del contrato) if the property is to be disposed of | A draft contract alone is not accepted |
| If the sale funds another property for the child: the terms of that purchase, its registry documents, the seller’s name and a commercial appraisal | |
| Medical certificate | Only if an illness is the reason for the proceedings |
The checklist also states two firm rules. First, “El precio de la venta no podrá ser menor que el consignado en el avalúo” (the sale price cannot be lower than the appraisal). Second, for a disposal you must attach the contract terms: “no se admite que se presente solo proyecto de contrato” (a bare draft contract is not accepted).
If the opinion is adverse or someone opposes
- Adverse opinion. Decreto 54-77, Art. 4: when the opinion is adverse, the notary, after notifying the interested parties, “deberá enviar el expediente al tribunal competente, para su resolución”. The case continues before a judge.
- Opposition by a party. Art. 1: the notary stops and sends the file to the court.
No source reviewed sets out how to undo a sale that has already been authorized or completed.
Costs and timing
No source reviewed publishes a PGN fee, a valuation fee, a notary fee or a total cost. The PGN checklist mentions notarial stamps without an amount. No end-to-end processing time is published. The three-day hearing period in Decreto 54-77, Art. 4 is a procedural period, not a service promise.
Parents living abroad
The sources reviewed contain no procedure specific to selling a minor’s property from abroad. If you plan to act through a representative, confirm with your notary that any power of attorney covers this proceeding.
A note on Ministerio Público and PGN
The Código Civil, Decreto 54-77 and the procedure code were written using the term Ministerio Público, and this page quotes them as written. In these proceedings it is the PGN that is heard: its current checklist asks for the resolution granting a hearing to the Procuraduría General de la Nación, and its guidelines say the PGN answers the hearing and issues the legal opinion.